Silver lining for Brenton Rickard
- Peter Gardiner
- 15th August 2008
Coolum Primary School teacher Storm Rickard with one of her students Tahnee Cardona get into the Olympic spirit after Storm's cousin Brenton Rickard won a silver medal in the 200m breastroke.
And so was their teacher – Brenton's immensely proud cousin Storm Rickard. For Ms Rickard and her charges, cheering home their own Olympic hero to silver was a moment every bit as momentous as Australia's upset win in the women's 4 x 200 freestyle relay.
The day before his big race – his last shot at an individual medal after coming fifth in his favoured 100m breaststroke - her class of novice Olympic fans had texted Brenton and then sent a herogram to let him know Coolum Primary was right behind him.
"Definitely I think they helped get him (Brenton) there – he is probably not one of the best known swimmers and to know people back home are supporting you is important," she said.
Brenton said in the post-race interview: "(My) heart was in the mouth a bit but to see second next to my name is just fantastic, I'm just so happy," .
Ditto for his little Storm troopers who all will get an A plus for patriotic fervour from Ms Rickard.
She said she was not at all surprised that Brenton looked so laid back.
"He's always been pretty much like that – very cas (casual)," she said.
Meanwhile, down at Currimundi, Del and Bill Payne were cheering their grand-daughter Jessicah Schipper to her second bronze at the Games, this time in the butterfly 200m.
Jess chased her world record mark all the way – but Chinese pair Liu Zige and Jiao Liuyang were ahead of the world champion.
Jess's medal lost none of its dazzling sparkle for its colour, according to Del, who said her efforts lived up to their expectations, if not their hopes of gold.
"She went over there to win an individual medal and she has two of them now."
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